


Solace

by GreenPhoenix



Category: Law & Order: SVU
Genre: Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-15
Updated: 2018-07-15
Packaged: 2019-06-10 19:37:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,024
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15298578
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GreenPhoenix/pseuds/GreenPhoenix





	Solace

**Author's Note:**

  * For [sidewinder](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sidewinder/gifts).



Peter Stone puts a glass down on the shiny counter of the bar room table. The bar is noisy with people celebrating after a long week’s work. He stands out by being quiet and withdrawn.   
“Are you drinking alone?” asks a woman with hair the color of something very red and unnatural, though her eyes are warm and blue.  
“Yes,” he replies and she takes the hint and leaves.  
He just saw Olivia Benson off and she was just trying to brighten his mood, not sleep with him.   
He can’t talk to that many people right now, especially ones that don’t know about his father and Pamela. He had to loose them both within a year just to make things worse.  
He’s orphaned by the loss of his father, and crippled by the loss of his sister.  
Peter can’t talk about this, not yet, not even with Liv. Pamela’s condition made people unconformable, and even he was uneasy with her lack of recognition of who he was. In death she finally knew him, but then it was too late. Peter had lost too much in too short a time not to break a little. 

 

*  
“Hey Peter, Peter Stone,” says a very familiar voice.  
“Yeah,” he says and sees his former lover, Evan Richter.  
“How are you?” Evan asks.  
“I’ve been better,” he says.   
“Oh sorry, I heard about your dad and sister. Open mouth, insert foot.”  
“It’s okay. What about you?”  
“Oh, I’ve divorced my husband,” Evan says and his eyes are sad.  
“Sorry.”  
“He took the cat and I got the bad memories of him treating me bad,” Evan says wistfully.   
“Who did you marry?”  
“Johnny. You barely knew him.”  
“True. “  
“Do you want to go someplace else?”   
For some reason Peter goes with him and finds himself comforted by the idea. It’s as if no time has passed since they last met, and that was years ago. They still have an easy connection and he’s calmer than he just was, a pleasant beer buzz inside him.

*  
Evan and Peter met at law school, neither of them was out but they learned many things together. Evan went into corporate law and they lost touch somewhere along the way. That’s the way it usually goes. But here was a a chance for something else. 

*  
They catch an unpleasant case, where a man has abused his family. He thinks of how the legendary Alex Cabot would have tackled it, or how the fiery Casey Novak would have attacked it. He even wonders about Barba, but he doesn’t ask anyone.  
He’s on his own, and Fin at least has sage and calm things to say, when he’s not talking about how he needs to see his husband, John Munch or his son and grandson.  
Carisi is as ever clueless, he notes with some humor. 

*  
He meets Evan at a game and they talk some more. Nothing more is said about the bad ex and they even kiss. Stone hasn’t had feelings like that for a long time, but now they come back to the surface. They were never dead, just waiting for the right moment to return.

*

“So how’s corporate law?” asks Peter over coffee, thinking he’s glad he’s not in it.  
“A lot of schmoozing with rich guys,” says Evan and stirs his cup with a knowing wink. His eyes are very blue, and his mouth looks generous. Peter can imagine kissing him again.  
“All of them?”  
“No. You get poor inventors trying to protect their patents and small time business owners needing someone to help them against the big corporate entities.”  
“Sounds like good work.”  
“It can be, just like yours. “  
“So I imagine. “  
“You put away a lot of bad guys,” says Evan and looks at him with a kind look.   
“I hope I do. That’s the best you can do.”  
“Must be some heavy stuff to deal with with SVU.”  
“It is, the stuff you see will haunt you forever.”  
“I can only imagine,” says Evan and they fall silent for a while.

*  
“You sweet on that guy I saw you with?” asks Amanda Rollins fake-casually.  
“I might be, I used to be, old flame and all,” Stone says.  
“Yeah? That’s intriguing. I’m seeing someone too.”  
“Lucky guy.”  
“Girl , actually,” she grins.   
“Good for you.”  
“I’ll introduce her someday.”  
“That serious, huh?”  
“Kinda. We’ll see,” she says and smiles. 

*

“I think I might be in love with again,” Evan says softly over dinner. “I know the timing is less than ideal..”  
“It never gets easier. I’m still going to be unused to it, but I do have feelings for you. They never went away, just become buried.”  
“Think we have a shot, then?” Evan asks.  
“Yes, “ Peter says and leans in for a kiss.

*  
“You look happy,” says Amanda.  
“I am, “ says Stone and looks more relaxed than he has for a very long time.  
“My lady is ready to get legit,” says Amanda.  
“So who is the mystery woman?” Stone asks.  
“Liv. I guess I always knew,” she says.  
“I’m happy for you.”  
“As I am for you,” says Amanda and smiles brightly. She and Liv have plans for the weekend and they don’t include the kids for a change. 

*  
It’s different than it was when they were first dating; they are both older and hopefully wiser. They wear internal scars, and maybe they are more cynical. Peter knows he can trust Evan with his troubles, and Evan can heal with him too.   
He squeezes Evan’s hand harder over the table where they sit, and Evan strokes his hand.  
Time has passed and they have both changed, but this new start can be what they both truly need. Evan leans in for a kiss and he claims it with all his heart. The shadows are real, and so is the light. Now he can see a future for himself for the first time in a long time. He can face things with Evan and rebuild himself. In the end, Pamela knew him, now he just has to know himself better. He can be the man he always knew he could be.


End file.
